Scalable message fidelity

ABSTRACT

Message content is scaled to support rich messaging. Devices and associated messaging systems can support various levels of content richness or fidelity. Message content scaling is employed to ensure sharing of content in as rich a manner as possible given limitations associated with various messaging systems, among other things Messages can be scaled down or degraded, for instance where communicating devices do not support high fidelity content being transmitted. Alternatively, messages can be scaled up or enriched in cases, where low fidelity content is transmitted to a device supporting richer content, for example.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.12/342,838, filed on Dec. 23, 2008, and entitled “SCALABLE MESSAGEFILDELITY.” The entirety the above noted application is incorporatedherein by reference.

BACKGROUND

Technology seeks to aid human communication. Communication is a processthat includes a sender and a receiver who converse over some medium.There are two main types of communication of which technologyconventionally assists namely verbal and written communication. Forexample, traditional telephones are devices utilized to transmit andreceive sound or more specifically voice communication amongstparticipants. This swung communication away from handwritten letters totelephonic voice communication. The advent of computers and the Internetbrought written communication back in vogue by way of e-mail (electronicmail) and instant messaging (IM). Further, development of mobilecommunication devices offers support for voice and written capabilityutilizing SMS (Short Messaging Service) and/or MMS (Multimedia MessagingService), for instance.

E-mail is a store-and-forward style technology for written electroniccommunication. E-mail systems provide facilities for sending, receiving,and transmitting messages electronically, among other things. Messagescan be entered utilizing a text editor and addressed to recipientsutilizing a related e-mail address. Such messages can then be saved in asender's mailbox, sent across a network such as the Internet to amessage server, and subsequently pushed or forwarded to a recipient'smailbox. While e-mail is fast and reliable, it is also a very flexiblecommunication means. For example, in addition to written text, it canalso include pictures, audio, and/or links to websites, among otherthings.

IM (Instant Messaging) is a form of real-time communication or chattingamongst individuals using typed text, among other things. Computers orother devices connected to a network such as the Internet can facilitatecommunication in this manner. In general, IM differs from e-mail in thattext messages appear before users in substantially real-time orinstantly. Messages sent to individuals who are not on-line and/orconnected to the service cannot be completed. However, some systems havebeen developed that allow messages to be sent to off-line individualsthereby blurring the distinction between IM and e-mail.

SMS (Short Messaging Service) is a communication protocol that enablesshort text messaging between mobile communications devices. SMS is ahybrid e-mail—IM technology for mobile devices such as phones. Likee-mail, SMS is a store-and-forward technology. Messages are sent andreceived utilizing a message service center that acts as an intermediarybetween senders and recipients. Further, messages are limited to textmessages and in particular short messages. In addition, the speed atwhich text messages are delivered, if at all, can be affected byinherent connectively issues such as where a user has a poorcommunication signal or is out of range.

MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service) is an extension to SMS to enablemultimedia objects such as images and audio to be sent amongst mobilecommunication devices. MMS messages are sent in a similar fashion as SMSmessages except that multimedia content is first encoded and inserted ina manner analogous to e-mail. Like SMS, however, MSS is not the same ase-mail since it is based multimedia messaging concepts where messagesare afforded in accordance with a presentation file, among other things.

The above noted messaging technologies are distinct for the most part.For example, e-mail and IM are confined to computers while SMS and MMSare associated with mobile devices. Nevertheless, some devices such asso-called smart phones are essentially small handheld computers withphone capabilities. Accordingly, smart phones can enable use of bothtechnologies but through different supporting infrastructure. Forinstance, a user can text message using SMS or via IM by logging inthrough a web browser.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a scalable message system in accordancewith an aspect of the disclosed subject matter.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a representative scale component accordingto an aspect of the disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an exemplary picture component inaccordance with a disclosed aspect.

FIG. 4 is a graphical representation of picture scaling in accordancewith a disclosed aspect.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of an exemplary video component according toan aspect of the disclosure.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of an exemplary audio component in accordancewith a disclosed aspect.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a sender/receiver device including fidelityscaling functionality according to an aspect of the disclosure.

FIG. 8 is a flow chart diagram of a message scaling method in accordancewith an aspect of the disclosed subject matter.

FIG. 9 is a flow chart diagram of a sender-side messaging methodaccording to a disclosed aspect.

FIG. 10 is a flow chart diagram of a receiver-messaging method inaccordance with an aspect of the disclosure.

FIG. 11 is a schematic block diagram illustrating a suitable mobileoperating environment for aspects of the subject disclosure.

FIG. 12 is a schematic block diagram illustrating a suitable non-mobileoperating environment for aspects of the subject disclosure.

FIG. 13 is a schematic block diagram of a sample mobile network platformfor aspects of the disclosed subject matter.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Systems, methods, apparatuses, and the like pertaining to scalablemessage fidelity are described in detail hereinafter. Messaging systemsand/or associated communication devices can support varying levels ofcontent richness or fidelity. Rather than baring communication betweendifferent systems, scaling of messages or message content can beemployed to ensure communication in as rich a manner as supported, amongother things. Accordingly, messages or portions thereof can be scaleddown or degraded, or scaled up or enriched. In other words, messagefidelity is scalable.

Various aspects of the subject disclosure are now described withreference to the annexed drawings, wherein like numerals refer to likeor corresponding elements throughout. It should be understood, however,that the drawings and detailed description relating thereto are notintended to limit the claimed subject matter to the particular formdisclosed. Rather, the intention is to cover all modifications,equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of theclaimed subject matter.

In one or more embodiments, the subject disclosure pertains to scalingmessage richness or fidelity. Differences can exist between the richnessof a message and support by a receiving device and/or messaging system.Further, the difference can be in either direction. For instance, amessage can be richer than a device supports or support can be providedfor richer content than a message provides. Fidelity scaling can beemployed to bridge this gap and facilitate communication. Further,communication can be aided by notifying a sender and/or receiver that acomposed message is not the same as that rendered to a recipient toavoid confusion, among other things.

In accordance with one aspect of the disclosure, scaling can be employedto map high fidelity messages produced by a rich message system tolegacy devices. By way of example and not limitation, audio can beconverted to text; video can be transformed to a series of still imageswith optional text; or a webpage, map, or image can be replaced by alink thereto alone or in combination with descriptive text.

Referring initially to FIG. 1, a scalable message system 100 isillustrated in accordance with an aspect of the claimed subject matter.The system 100 includes a sender device 110 and a receiver device 120.Of course, a single device can be both a sender at a receiver atdifferent times, but are delineated here for purposes of explanation.Sender device 110 and/or associated messaging system or subsystem, cantransmit a message electronically to a target or receiver device 120and/or associated messaging system or subsystem (not shown). Althoughnot limited thereto, in accordance with one aspect, the message cancorrespond to a thread style message that is communicated substantiallyin real-time or instantaneously. The richness or fidelity of thetransmitted message can vary, for example as a function of supportprovided by the sender device 110. Similarly, the receiver device 120can support different levels of message richness. Accordingly, a sort ofmessaging impedance mismatch can occur. By way of example and notlimitation, consider a simple situation in which a sender deviceincludes integrated support for MMS and a receiver device supports SMSand not the multimedia extension. As a result, the receiver device 120does not have native support for pictures, audio, and/or video that canbe transmitted by the sender device 110. Analysis component 130 andfidelity scale component 140 operate to facilitate rich communicationamongst the sender device 110 and receiver device 120 in this context.

The analysis component 130 performs analysis to determine, infer, orotherwise identify messaging capabilities of the receiver device 140.For instance, the device itself can be interrogated, information can begathered about capabilities from a third party (e.g., manufacturer,service provider, social networks . . . ), or previous interactions canbe analyzed. Furthermore, inferences can be made with respect to amanufacturer of a device and/or type or style of device, amongst othercontextual factors. It should be further appreciated that the analysiscomponent 130 can be communicatively coupled to the sender device 110 toaid discovery of capabilities thereof. However, since all or anyone ofthose capabilities may or may not be employed with respect to a message,processing can be left to the fidelity scale component 140. Additionallyor alternatively, the analysis component 130 can analyze messages asthey are composed and subsequently sent.

The fidelity scale component 140 or simply scale component 140transforms or scales messages to a receiver device supported level ofmessage richness. Based on information from the analysis component 130regarding messaging support as well as a message itself, scaling canoccur.

Scaling can be multidirectional. In particular, a message or messagecontent can be scaled down or scaled up. In other words, message contentcan be degraded or enriched. For example, if the sender device 110produces a rich or high fidelity message and the receiver device 120does not support that level of richness, the message can be scaled downor degraded. Alternatively, if a low fidelity message is afforded by thesender device 110 and the receiver device 120 supports greater messagefidelity, then the message can be scaled up or enriched. Of course,where the sender and receiver devices 110 and 120, respectively, supportthe same level of message richness, the message can simply pass throughthe scale component 140 without augmentation.

In accordance with one embodiment, the sender device 110 and associatedmessaging system can support a high level of message richness orfidelity, while the receiver devices 120 are legacy devices that supportlower levels or richness. In this manner, the messages can be scaled tofacilitate interaction with legacy devices. For instance, the messagecan include a combination of SMS, MMS, IM, and/or email type featuresthat are transmitted across SMS and/or IP backbones to mobile devices.In particular, messages can be grouped into conversations betweenparticipants including conversation bubbles capturing a message.Moreover, the messages can include text, images, audio, video,emoticons, maps, and/or websites, among other things. In other words,messaging need not be confined to simple text or multimedia supported byMMS. For example, an actual web page can form part of a message sent notjust a link thereto. A receiver or legacy device 120 can support at mosta subset of such messaging content. Scaling can be employed tofacilitate conversation between devices that support different messagingcontent or message richness/fidelity.

According to one aspect of the claimed subject matter, message scalingcan be performed intelligently. For instance, messages can be scaled upto a maximum level or richness or fidelity supported by a receiverdevice 120. In other words, scaling can seek to ensure messages are asrich as possible given particular support. Rather than refusing toaccept or transmit a message with unsupported content or simplystripping such content from the message, a scaled message can seek toleverage available support to facilitate conversation. By way ofexample, not limitation, consider a scenario in which a message is sentwith an embedded web page therein. Based on support provided by thereceiver device 120, the message or content can be scaled in differentways. Where a device simple supports text, the message can be scaled toinclude the web page URL (Uniform Resource Locator) as well as some textdescribing the webpage such as the title as well as various content andor metadata to facilitate participation in a conversation.Alternatively, if the device also supports embedded picture messages, animage of the web page can be sent alone or in conjunction with the URLand descriptive text information.

Notification component 150 is communicatively coupled to the fidelityscale component 140 as well as the sender device 110 and the receiverdevice 120. As the name suggests, the notification component 150 cannotify or otherwise inform a message sender and/or receiver when amessage has be scaled or transformed by the scale component 140. Forinstance, a user of substantially antiquated device with respect tomessaging technology can be notified when the message received wasscaled. A sender of the message can also be similarly informed. Suchnotification can simply note the fact that the message was scaled and/oridentify specific alterations made during the scaling process. In oneimplementation, notification can be embodied in or as part of a message.For example, a received message can include text and/or a signalindicative scaling. The sender could then receive a receipt oradditional message that scaling was performed, among other things. Inany event, notification can facilitate conversation by alertingcommunicating parties that the message received is not of the same asthe message sent, consequently avoiding any confusion that may haveotherwise occurred. To that end, an actual description of the scalingfurther helps. For example, a notification can indicate that a picturewas removed and replaced with a URL and/or descriptive text.

Turning attention to FIG. 2, a representative scale component 140 isillustrated in accordance with an aspect of the claimed subject matter.As shown, the scale component 140 includes a plurality of sub-componentsfor processing various types, kinds, and/or categories of messagecontent. In particular, the scale component includes picture component210, video component 220, audio component 230, which can also simply bereferred to as a media component 212, a webpage component 240, a mapcomponent 250, and emoticon component 260. Although not limited thereto,each of these components or subcomponents provides unique functionalitywith respect to scaling a specific type of message content. Further, thecomponents can operate alone or in combination as will be describedfurther infra.

Referring to FIG. 3, an exemplary picture component 210 is depicted inaccordance with an aspect of the claimed subject matter. The picturecomponent 210 can handle scaling with respect to various types of imagesor pictures embedded within a message. Compression component 310 is amechanism for compressing or decompressing an image. Some messagingsystems associated with devices can place limitation on the size ofimages. The compression component 310 can employ various known and/ornovel compression/decompression technologies to enable size limitationsto be respected, among other things. Data component 320 can extractand/or inject descriptive data associated with an image. For instance, apicture title and metadata associated with an image can be extracted andemployed to describe an embedded picture where such picture is unable tobe displayed based on message content limitations. Alternatively andwhere available, data can be injected, for example by adding oraugmenting image metadata. Link component 330 is a mechanism forinjecting and/or expanding URLs or other links to images. In one case,an image can be replaced with a URL where images are not supported. Onthe other hand, if a URL is embedded in a message sent to a device thatsupports images, the URL can be up-scaled and the URL swapped with theimage it identifies.

FIG. 4 depicts an exemplary picture scaling according to a claimedaspect. Two messages 410 and 420 are shown. The message 410 includes anembedded picture 410. Where this is the message transmitted to a devicethat does not support pictures, the message can be scaled down to themessage 420. Here, the picture is replaced with a URL that can beutilized to download or otherwise view the picture as well as somedescriptive data associated with the image. By contrast, if the message420 is transmitted from a device that does not support pictures to onethat does, the message can be scaled up. In particular, a picture can besubstituted for the link and/or descriptive text.

Turning to FIG. 5, an exemplary video component 220 that scales messagevideo content is illustrated in accordance with an aspect of the claimedsubject matter. The video component includes asegmentation/de-segmentation component 510. The component 510 enables avideo to be segmented or divided as well as de-segmented or combined.For example, a plurality of still images can be extracted from andemployed to replace a video where pictures are supported but not videos.Similarly, audio can be removed from the video for separate transmissionor in conjunction with a plurality of still images. Alternatively, audiocan be recombined with still images, which can be merged in sequence toproduce a video, slide show or the like.

Similar to the picture component 210, the video component 220 can alsoinclude analogous components such as compression component 310, datacomponent 320, and link component 330. The compression component 310 cancompress and decompress video to facilitate message communication withsystems of with various video size constraints. The data component 320can extract and combine text descriptive of a video. For example,metadata can be extracted from a video and utilized as a replacement orpart of a replacement for a video. The link component 330 can facilitatereplacement of a video with a link such as a URL or vice versa. Forinstance, rather than a video a link associated with the video can beemployed where a messaging device does not support video. Of course, amessage can also be up-scaled or enriched by substituting a video for alink thereto where a device supports video messaging.

Audio component 230 includes a conversion component 610, among otherthings, to convert audio to an appropriate form given messaging systemand/or device constraints. In one embodiment, the conversion component610 can employ known audio to text and/or text to audio technology. Inthis manner, if a message receiver does not support audio, textconversion of the audio can be employed to transforms an audio clip totext. In the context of up scaling rather than downscaling, audioconversion can be utilized to transform text to audio.

The audio component 230 also includes other analogous media componentsincluding compression component 310, data component 320, and linkcomponent 330. The compression component 310 can employ audiocompression and decompression technologies aid scaling based on messagesize limitations. The data component 320 can operate to extract andinject data descriptive of a piece of audio. For example, a file titleand associated metadata can be captured or introduce with respect to aparticular audio clip or the like. The link component 330 enables apiece of audio be replaced by a link such as a URL to a source of theaudio. In one instance, the link component 330 can facilitate storage ofcommunicated audio and generating a reference thereto. Alternatively,the link component 330 can acquire a referenced piece of audio byfollowing the link and embed the audio into a message instead of or inaddition to the link.

Returning to FIG. 2, it is to be appreciated that all or some componentscomprising the media component 212, namely picture component 210, videocomponent 220, and audio component 230, among other can interact toscale a message or message content. By way of example, not limitation,consider a scenario in which a sender includes a video in a message notsupported by a receiver. The video component 220 can segment the mediainto visual and audio portions. The visual portions, which comprise anumber of still images produced by the video component 220, can befurther scaled using picture component 210 to compress the pictures, forinstance. Further, the audio component 230 can transform the audioportion into text, which can then be associated with each related stillimage.

The fidelity scale component 140 can also include a number of othercomponents that can use similar technology or techniques employed withrespect to media component 212. In particular, the scale component 140includes a web page component 240, map component 250, and emoticoncomponent 260.

The web page component 240 enables scaling with respect to web pages,WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) pages, or the like embedded in amessage. As per fidelity degradation, the web page component 240 cantransform the page to an image of the page where image support isavailable. Additionally or alternatively, a link to the web page can beinserted to enable a user to access communicated content. Further yet,data and/or metadata can be extracted from the web page title, headers,and/or key words and provided as text. Of course, a message can beenriched when provided with of various forms by actually identifying areference web page and embedding it within a message.

The map component 250 aids scaling of message maps. Since maps can bepresented as web pages or images, among other things, along with text,many of the same techniques applied with respect to web page component240 and picture component 210 can be applied. In one instance,compression can be applied to reduce the size of a map to allow the mapto be communicated. A link such as a URL associated with a map can alsobe utilized in place of a map or in addition to an image of the map, forinstance. Additionally or alternatively, information can be extractedfrom a map and utilized to provide descriptive text that captures theessence of the map such as an identified location and surrounding areas.Such information can be gathered from data associated with the mapand/or from another source utilizing data forming part of the map tolocate the data. In one particular instance, the map component 250 cancommunicate with mapping and/or GPS (Global Positioning System)applications to provide turn-by-turn directions from a device user'scurrent position to a particular location identified on a map in text orsome other form. Like other components of the scale component 140, themap component can be employed to enrich or degrade message contentrelated to maps. Accordingly, note that the map component 250 can embeda map in a message in place of or in addition to other communicationconcerning a place or location. For example, where an address is sentvia message to a recipient whose device supports embedded maps, a map ofthe location can be injected to facilitate communication.

The emoticon component 260 provides scaling of different types ofemoticons, which provide a mechanism for expressing emotion, among otherthings. Emoticons can take various forms include text, graphical, andimage based. Further, some emoticons can also include animation.Consequently, emoticon component 260 enables various kinds of emoticonsto be replaced by others to facilitate communication in accordance withsupport provided therefor. For example, text or ASCII (American StandardCode for Information Interchange) emoticons (e.g., :-), :-( . . . ) canbe replaced by graphical and/or image based representation wheresupported. Of course, where animated emoticons are employed otherrepresentations can be converted back and forth to enrich or degrademessage content.

As previously mentioned, in accordance with an aspect of the claimedsubject matter, the fidelity scale component 140 can be employed tofacilitate communication by way of up scaling or down scaling messagecontent to a supported level of message richness. While this can beperformed automatically, it is also to be noted that user definedsettings can affect scaling. For example, if a user has a preference forparticular types of message such as text only, text and pictures, ortext, pictures and video, amongst other combinations, despite messagingcapabilities, scaling can be employed to implement those preferences.Furthermore, a device or other mechanism can influence scaling as afunction of current processing load, memory constraints, and/or networklatency, among other things.

While fidelity scaling can occur external to a device, for example on aserver associated with a mobile device service provider, it is also tobe appreciated that a sender/receiver device 700 can include suchfunctionality as depicted in FIG. 7. Sender/receiver device 700 providesfunctionality for both sending and receiving communication at differenttimes. The device 700 includes a message component 710 that providefunctionality associated with composing, sending, and receivingmessages, amongst other conventional functionality. The messagecomponent or system 710 can define message richness by supportedfunctionality. Although not limited thereto, in accordance with oneaspect the message component 710 can combine SMS, MMS, IM, and e-mailtype features into a cohesive system that can transmit across SMS and IPbackbones in a manner that is transparent or without observable effectto end users. The analysis component 130, fidelity scale component 140,and notification component 150, as previously described, are allcommunicatively and/or functionally coupled to the message component 710to enable scaling of messages or message content in accordance with anaspect of the claimed subject matter. In brief, the analysis component130 can analyze or otherwise determine the capabilities of a receivingdevice and/or the richness of an acquired message. The fidelity scalecomponent 140 can then scale a message up or down to facilitatecommunication in connection with supported message richness or fidelity.The notification component 150 can transmit a notification or indicationthat a message has been scaled and optionally how or what effect thescaling had on the message to either or both of a sender and receivervia the message component 710, for example.

The aforementioned systems, devices, and the like have been describedwith respect to interaction between several components. It should beappreciated that such systems and components can include thosecomponents or sub-components specified therein, some of the specifiedcomponents or sub-components, and/or additional components.Sub-components could also be implemented as components communicativelycoupled to other components rather than included within parentcomponents. Further yet, one or more components and/or sub-componentsmay be combined into a single component to provide aggregatefunctionality. Communication between systems, components and/orsub-components can be accomplished in accordance with either a pushand/or pull model. The components may also interact with one or moreother components not specifically described herein for the sake ofbrevity, but known by those of skill in the art.

Furthermore, as will be appreciated, various portions of the disclosedsystems above and methods below can include or consist of artificialintelligence, machine learning, or knowledge or rule based components,sub-components, processes, means, methodologies, or mechanisms (e.g.,support vector machines, neural networks, expert systems, Bayesianbelief networks, fuzzy logic, data fusion engines, classifiers . . . ).Such components, inter alia, can automate certain mechanisms orprocesses performed thereby to make portions of the systems and methodsmore adaptive as well as efficient and intelligent. By way of exampleand not limitation, the fidelity scale component 140, or one or moresub-components thereof, can employ such mechanisms to infer or otherwisedetermine an appropriate or intelligent manner and/or extent of scaling.For instance, these mechanisms can be employed to help generatedescriptive text associated with media as a function of provided data ormetadata and/or utilizing to help generate concise and meaningfulsummaries by way of pictures and/or text of message audio or video.

In view of the exemplary systems described supra, methodologies that maybe implemented in accordance with the disclosed subject matter will bebetter appreciated with reference to the flow charts of FIGS. 8-10.While for purposes of simplicity of explanation, the methodologies areshown and described as a series of blocks, it is to be understood andappreciated that the claimed subject matter is not limited by the orderof the blocks, as some blocks may occur in different orders and/orconcurrently with other blocks from what is depicted and describedherein. Moreover, not all illustrated blocks may be required toimplement the methodologies described hereinafter.

Referring to FIG. 8, a message scaling method 800 is illustrated inaccordance with an aspect of the claimed subject matter. At referencenumeral 810, a message is received, retrieved, or otherwise identified.The message can correspond to an electronic threaded communication thatis transmitted substantially instantaneously, for example in a manneranalogous to SMS/MMS or IM. The message can include text, images, audio,video, web pages, maps, and/or emoticons, among other things. At numeral820, the capabilities of a communication device are determined Thedetermination concerns the richness of messages or message content ableto be processed. For example, support can be provided for one or more oftext, images, audio, video, web pages, and maps, among other things. Atreference 830, the message is scaled in accordance with capabilities ofthe device. In accordance with one aspect, the message can be scaled tothe maximum fidelity enabled by the device. However, scaling can also beinfluenced by other factors including but not limited to userpreferences. In addition, it is to be appreciated that scaling canoperate to scale down or degrade a message, or scale up or enrich amessage. Further yet, scaling can be down in an intelligent manner tofacilitate communication. At reference 840, a notification is sent to amessage sender and/or receiver indicating that the message has beenaltered and optionally how it was altered. Notification can be effectedin a variety of different ways including but not limited to injectedmessage text and/or a new message. Among other things, notification canfacilitate conversation by alerting communicating parties that themessage received is not of the same form as that sent thereby avoidingany confusion, for example.

While not limited thereto, in accordance with one aspect of the claimedsubject matter, the method 800 can be performed on a server and/or in adistributed environment. For example, a server associated with a contentor data service provider can acquire messages from sender devices,perform scaling in accordance with method 800, and subsequently transmitthe scaled message as well as notification to a receiver device.Furthermore, scaling can be embodied as a network or web serviceemployed by a device and/or content service provider.

FIG. 9 is a method of sender-side messaging 900 in accordance with anaspect of the claimed subject matter. At reference numeral 910, acomposed message is received, retrieved, or otherwise acquired. Atnumeral 920, supported message richness or fidelity of a messagerecipient is identified, determined, inferred or the like. For example,the recipient device can communicate such information upon request or asender can reference information stored about previous interactions withthe same or like device. Further yet, a server and/or service can becontacted to aid identification of recipient capability.

At numeral 930, the composed message is scaled in accordance with themaximum level of fidelity supported by the recipient device. Of course,various preferences or other issues can affect the scaling such that themaximum is not always accomplished. Up or down scaling can beaccomplished with respect to various types of message content includingtext, images, audio, video, web pages, maps, and/or emoticons amongother things. Media can be scaled in similar manners such as viacompression/decompression, descriptive data extraction/injection andlink insertion and realization. Further, audio can be converted to textand video to still images or vice versa. Similar scaling can occur withrespect to specific content such as web pages, which can be converted toimages and optionally accompanied by descriptive data and a link, forexample.

Subsequently, at numeral 940, scaled messages can be transmitted to atarget receiver device. These scaled messages can correspond to actualtransformation of the original message or generation of a new scaledversion, among other things. At reference numeral 950, notification canbe provided of the scaling. For instance, prior to transmitting themessage such notification can be included with the scaled message.Further, the sender can also be notified to avoid confusion when acomposed message is not communicated as composed but rather in adifferent form or format.

FIG. 10 illustrates a method of receiver-sent messaging 1000 inaccordance with an aspect of the claimed subject matter. At referencenumeral 1010, a message is received or acquired from anothercommunication device. In accordance with one non-limiting embodiment,the message can be a thread style message where transmission andinteraction are substantially instantaneous. In other words, the messagecan correspond to one or more variations of text messages or instantmessages.

At numeral 1020, the message is analyzed to determine content richnessor fidelity. Richness or lack thereof can be determined as a function ofsupported message content, among other things. For instance, a messagethat includes solely text is not as rich as one that also includespictures. Similarly, a message that includes audio and video in additionto text and pictures is still richer yet. Accordingly, there is a levelof content richness that can be associated with the received message.

A determination is made at reference 1030 as to whether the content issupported by the receiving device. In other words, the question iswhether or not the device supports the at least the same level ofrichness as the message communicates. If it does not (“No”), the messagecan be scaled down to the level of richness or fidelity supported by thedevice at reference 1042. If at least the same level of richness issupported an attempt can be made to scale up the communicated message.If this is not possible or it is undesirable (e.g., based on userpreferences), the method can simple pass through to 1060. Otherwise, themethod continues at 1050.

At reference numeral 1050, a sender can be notified that their messagewas scaled by the receiver. Optionally, the style, kind or type, andextent of scaling can be communicated. For example, the notification canbe “Recipient does not support audio accordingly the content was scaledto text” or “Recipient scaled up content from a URL to the image pointedto by the URL.” Such notification can be communicated as part of a sentdesignated message perhaps sent and received behind the scenes orinjected within a reply message, among other things.

At reference numeral 1060, the scaled message is rendered by the deviceand/or associated messaging component/system. Furthermore, it is to beappreciated that rending can include injection of a notificationregarding scaling of the rendered message. Subsequently, the method canterminate.

As used in this application, the terms “component,” “system,” “device”and the like are intended to refer to a processor-based entity (e.g.,computer, mobile communication device, . . . ), either hardware, acombination of hardware and software, software, or software inexecution. For example, a component may be, but is not limited to being,a process running on a processor, a processor, an object, an instance,an executable, a thread of execution, a program, and/or a computer orother processor based device. By way of illustration, and notlimitation, both an application running on a computer and the computercan be a component. One or more components can reside within a processand/or thread of execution and a component may be localized on oneprocessor-base devices and/or distributed between two or more devices.

The word “exemplary” or various forms thereof are used herein to meanserving as an example, instance, or illustration. Any aspect or designdescribed herein as “exemplary” is not necessarily to be construed aspreferred or advantageous over other aspects or designs. Furthermore,examples are provided solely for purposes of clarity and understandingand are not meant to limit or restrict the claimed subject matter orrelevant portions of this disclosure in any manner. It is to beappreciated that a myriad of additional or alternate examples of varyingscope could have been presented, but have been omitted for purposes ofbrevity.

As used herein, the term “inference” or “infer” refers generally to theprocess of reasoning about or inferring states of the system,environment, and/or user from a set of observations as captured viaevents and/or data. Inference can be employed to identify a specificcontext or action, or can generate a probability distribution overstates, for example. The inference can be probabilistic—that is, thecomputation of a probability distribution over states of interest basedon a consideration of data and events. Inference can also refer totechniques employed for composing higher-level events from a set ofevents and/or data. Such inference results in the construction of newevents or actions from a set of observed events and/or stored eventdata, whether or not the events are correlated in close temporalproximity, and whether the events and data come from one or severalevent and data sources. Various classification schemes and/or systems(e.g., support vector machines, neural networks, expert systems,Bayesian belief networks, fuzzy logic, data fusion engines . . . ) canbe employed in connection with performing automatic and/or inferredaction in connection with the subject innovation.

Furthermore, all or portions of the subject innovation may beimplemented as a method, apparatus or article of manufacture usingstandard programming and/or engineering techniques to produce software,firmware, hardware, or any combination thereof to control a computer toimplement the disclosed innovation. The term “article of manufacture” asused herein is intended to encompass a computer program accessible fromany computer-readable device or media. For example, computer readablemedia can include but are not limited to magnetic storage devices (e.g.,hard disk, floppy disk, magnetic strips . . . ), optical disks (e.g.,compact disk (CD), digital versatile disk (DVD) . . . ), smart cards,and flash memory devices (e.g., card, stick, key drive . . . ).Additionally it should be appreciated that a carrier wave can beemployed to carry computer-readable electronic data such as those usedin transmitting and receiving electronic mail or in accessing a networksuch as the Internet or a local area network (LAN). Of course, thoseskilled in the art will recognize many modifications may be made to thisconfiguration without departing from the scope or spirit of the claimedsubject matter.

In order to provide a context for the various aspects of the disclosedsubject matter, FIGS. 11-13 as well as the following discussion areintended to provide a brief, general description of suitableenvironments in which the various aspects of the disclosed subjectmatter can be implemented. FIG. 11 illustrates a block diagram of anexample embodiment of a mobile device 1110 that can be employed withrespect to fidelity scaling in accordance with aspects described herein.FIG. 12 presents a block diagram of an example embodiment of anon-mobile device 1105, which can be provisioned through a non-mobilenetwork platform and employed in accordance with aspects describedherein. Further, FIG. 12 presents an exemplary embodiment of a mobilenetwork platform 1210 that can provide content management service inaccordance with aspects described herein.

Mobile device 1110, which can be a multimode access terminal, includes aset of antennas 1169 ₁-1169 _(Q) (Q is a positive integer) that canreceive and transmit signal(s) to and from wireless devices like accesspoints, access terminals, wireless ports and routers, and so forth, thatoperate in a radio access network. It should be appreciated thatantennas 1169 ₁-1169 _(Q) are a part of communication platform 1125,which comprises electronic components and associated circuitry thatprovide for processing and manipulation of received signal(s) andsignal(s) to be transmitted such as receivers and transmitters 1166,mux/demux component 1167, and mod/demod component 1168.

Multimode operation chipset(s) 1115 allows mobile device 1110 to operatein multiple communication modes in accordance with disparate technicalspecification for wireless technologies. In accordance with one aspect,multimode operation chipset(s) 1115 utilize communication platform 1125in accordance with a specific mode of operation (e.g., voice, GlobalPositioning System (GPS)). In another aspect, multimode operationchipset(s) 1115 can be scheduled to operate concurrently (e.g., whenQ>1) in various modes or within a multitask paradigm.

Mobile device 1110 includes access component 1118 that can conveycontent(s) or signaling in accordance with disclosed aspects. It shouldbe appreciated that access component 1118, can include a displayinterface that render content in accordance with aspects of an interfacecomponent (not shown) that resides within access component 1118.

Mobile device 1110 also includes a processor 1135 configured to conferfunctionality, at least in part, to substantially any electroniccomponent within mobile device 1110, in accordance with aspects of thedisclosure. As an example, processor 1135 can be configured to execute,at least in part, instructions in multimode operation chipset(s) thatafford multimode communication through mobile device 1110 likeconcurrent or multi-task operation of two or more chipset(s). As anotherexample, processor 1135 can aid mobile device 1110 in receiving andconveying signaling and content(s) (e.g., various data flows) that arepart of an active management act initiated by a subscriber that operatesmobile 1110, or an approval cycle associated with auxiliary subscribers(e.g., secondary subscriber, tertiary subscriber . . . ). Moreover,processor 1135 enables mobile device 1110 to process data (e.g.,symbols, bits, or chips) for multiplexing/demultiplexing,modulation/demodulation, such as implementing direct and inverse fastFourier transforms, selection of modulation rates, selection of datapacket formats, inter-packet times, etc. Memory 1155 can store datastructures (e.g., metadata); code structure(s) (e.g., modules, objects,classes, procedures . . . ) or instructions; network or deviceinformation like policies and specifications, attachment protocols; codesequences for scrambling, spreading and pilot (e.g., referencesignal(s)) transmission; frequency offsets, cell IDs, and so on.

The processor 1135 is functionally and/or communicatively coupled (e.g.,through a memory bus) to memory 1155 in order to store and retrieveinformation necessary to operate and/or confer functionality, at leastin part, to communication platform 1125, multimode operation chipset(s)1115, access component 1118, and substantially any other operationalaspects of multimode mobile 2010.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram of an exemplary embodiment of a non-mobiledevice 1210 that can convey content(s) and exploit various aspects ofcontent transaction(s), among other things. Device 1210 includes afunctional platform 1215 that comprises a set of components (not shown)that provide, at least in part, one or more specific functionalities ofthe non-mobile device 2110. Additionally, non-mobile device 2110includes an access component 1225 that operates in accordance withaspects previously described (e.g., 1118 of FIG. 11). Moreover, in oneaspect, non-mobile device 1210 can include a communication platform 1265that can provide wireless communication capabilities in addition, oralternatively, to connectivity of non-mobile device 1210 through wiredlinks (e.g., Ethernet, USB, GPIB, RS-232, FireWire, optical or coaxialcable connection to a network interface such as network interface 176,or router (not shown)). With respect to wireless capability, innon-mobile device 1210, which can be a multimode access terminal, a setof antennas 1267 ₁-1267 _(P) (P is a positive integer) can receive andtransmit signal(s) to and from wireless devices like access points,access terminals, wireless ports and routers, etc., that operate in aradio access network. Communication platform 1265 can exploit the set of“P” antennas 1267 ₁-1267 _(K), (K is a positive integer) to establishcommunication within various modes such as single-input single-output,or multiple-input multiple output. Furthermore, communication platform1265 can comprise various electronic components and associated circuitrythat enable processing and manipulation of received signal(s) andsignal(s) to be transmitted. In accordance with one aspect, thecommunication platform 1265 can be embodied in a modem.

Non-mobile device 1210 also includes a peripheral component 1235 thatcan include, or facilitate connection to, additional devices such asprinter(s), media player(s), wireless router(s) (e.g., networkinterface), biometrics touch-pad(s), etc. According to one aspect, toafford such connectivity, peripheral component 1235 can include jacksfor one or more of Ethernet, USB, GPIB, RS-232, FireWire, optical orcoaxial cable connectors.

Display interface 1255 can enable rendering of content. In an aspect,display interface 1255 can be a liquid crystal display (LCD), a plasmapanel, a monolithic thin-film based electrochromic display, amongstothers. Additionally, display interface 1255 can be a part of functionalplatform 1215 (e.g., when non-mobile device 1210 is a PC, an IPTV(Internet Protocol TV) interface, a mobile device, a back projectorcomponent, a data projector . . . ).

It should be appreciated that non-mobile device 1210 also can include adata entry interface 1245 that can allow an end user to (i) commandnon-mobile device 1210 via configuration of functional platform 1215,(ii) deliver content(s) or signaling in accordance with aspectsdescribed herein, or (iii) generate content(s) (e.g., images via abuilt-in camera) or directive(s), among other things.

Power supply 1275 can power-up device 1210 and substantially anycomponent included thereon. It should be appreciated that alternative oradditional embodiments of device 1210 may not include power supply 1275but rather be powered via attachment to a conventional power grid.

The non-mobile device 1210 includes processor 1285 which can becommunicatively and/or functionally coupled (e.g., through a memory bus)to memory 1295 in order to store and retrieve information necessary tooperate and/or confer functionality, at least in part, to accesscomponent 1225, and substantially any component(s) thereon in accordancewith aspects described herein; functional platform 1215; communicationplatform 1265 when non-mobile device 1210 includes it; and substantiallyany other component of non-mobile device 1210. With respect to accesscomponent 1225, and components thereon, processor 1285 can be configuredto execute access protocols to convey credentials and gains access to acontent management service to convey multimedia content(s) or signaling,among other things. In addition, in connection with communicationplatform 1265, processor 1285 can be configured to confer functionalityto substantially any electronic component within communication platform1265. Moreover, processor 1285 enables communication platform 1265 toprocess traffic and control data (e.g., symbols, bits, or chips) formultiplexing/demultiplexing, modulation/demodulation, such asimplementing direct and inverse fast Fourier transforms, selection ofmodulation rates, selection of data packet formats, inter-packet times,etc.

Memory 1295 can retain multimedia content(s), in accordance with aspectsof the subject innovation, or security credentials (e.g., passwords,encryption keys, digital certificates . . . ) that facilitate access toa content management service. In addition, memory 1255 can store datastructures (e.g., metadata); code structure(s) (e.g., modules, objects,classes, procedures . . . ) or instructions, or substantially any typeof software or firmware that processor 1285 can execute to providefunctionality associated with functional platform 1215; network ordevice information like policies and specifications; code sequences forscrambling, spreading and pilot (e.g., reference signal(s))transmission; amongst others.

As indicate supra, FIG. 13 presents an example embodiment of a mobilenetwork platform 1310 that can provide a content management service forcontent(s) and signaling in accordance with aspects described herein.Generally, mobile network platform 1310 can include components, such as,nodes, gateways, interfaces, servers, or platforms, that facilitate bothpacket-switched (PS) (e.g., internet protocol (IP), frame relay,asynchronous transfer mode (ATM)) and circuit-switched (CS) traffic(e.g., voice and data) and control generation for networked wirelesscommunication. In accordance with one aspect, a component within a PSdomain of network platform 1310 can be employed to effect communicationamong sources of content(s) in accordance with aspects described herein.

With respect to CS communication, mobile network platform 1310 includesCS gateway node(s) 1312 which can interface CS traffic received fromlegacy networks like telephony network(s) 1340 (e.g., public switchedtelephone network (PSTN), or public land mobile network (PLMN)) or a SS7network 1360. Circuit switched gateway node(s) 1312 can authorize andauthenticate traffic (e.g., voice) arising from such networks.Additionally, CS gateway node(s) 1312 can access mobility, or roaming,data generated through SS7 network 1360; for instance, mobility datastored in a visitation location register (VLR), which can reside inmemory 1330. Moreover, CS gateway node(s) 1312 interfaces CS-basedtraffic and signaling and gateway node(s) 1318. As an example, in a 3GPPUMTS network, CS gateway node(s) 1312 can be embodied, at least in part,in gateway GPRS support node(s) (GGSN).

In addition to receiving and processing CS-switched traffic andsignaling, PS gateway node(s) 1318 can authorize and authenticatePS-based data sessions with served mobile devices, non-mobile devices,amongst others through femto cell access points. Data sessions caninclude traffic, or content(s), exchange with networks external to themobile network platform 1310, like wide area network(s) (WANs) 1350 orservice network(s) 1380; it should be appreciated that local areanetwork(s) (LANs) 1370 can also be interfaced with mobile networkplatform 1310 through PS gateway node(s) 1318.

Packet-switched gateway node(s) 1318 generate packet data contexts whena data session is established. To that end, in an aspect, PS gatewaynode(s) 1318 can include a tunnel interface (e.g., tunnel terminationgateway (TTG) in 3GPP UMTS network(s) (not shown)) which can facilitatepacketized communication with different wireless network(s), such asfemto network platform and associated radio access network, Wi-Finetworks. It should be further appreciated that the packetizedcommunication can include multiple flows that can be generated throughservice (e.g., provisioning) and application server(s) 1314. It is to benoted that in 3GPP UMTS network(s), PS gateway node(s) 1318 (e.g., GGSN)and tunnel interface (e.g., TTG) comprise a packet data gateway (PDG).

The mobile network platform 1310 also includes serving node(s) 1316 thatconvey various packetized flows of data streams, received through PSgateway node(s) 1318. As an example, in a 3GPP UMTS network, servingnode(s) 1316 can be embodied in serving GPRS support node(s) (SGSN).

Server(s) 1314 in mobile network platform 1310 can execute numerousapplications (e.g., location services, online gaming, wireless banking,wireless device management . . . ) that can generate multiple differentpacketized data streams or flows, and manage (e.g., schedule, queue,format . . . ) such flows. Such application(s), for example, can includeadd-on features to standard services provided by mobile network platform1310. Data streams can be conveyed to PS gateway node(s) 1318 forauthorization/authentication and initiation of a data session, and toserving node(s) 1316 for communication thereafter. It should beappreciated that PS gateway node(s) 1318 associated with a macro networkplatform can authorize, or grant access, to content management service,and PS gateway node(s) 1318 associated with a femto network platform cancarry out communication with serving node(s) 1316 related to a femtonetwork platform. Server(s) 1314 can also effect security (e.g.,implement one or more firewalls) of mobile network platform 1310 toensure network's operation and data integrity in addition toauthorization and authentication procedures that CS gateway node(s) 1312and PS gateway node(s) 1318 can enact. Moreover, server(s) 1314 canprovision services from external network(s), such as WAN 1350 or GlobalPositioning System (GPS) network(s) (not shown). It is to be noted thatserver(s) 1314 can include one or more processors configured to conferat least in part the functionality of macro network platform 1310. Tothat end, the one or more processors can execute code instructionsstored in memory 1330, for example. It is should be appreciated thatserver(s) 1314 can include a content manager 1315, that provides contentmanagement service. To at least that end, content manager 1315 includesissues subscription(s) to the content management service.

Memory 1330 can store information related to operation of mobile networkplatform 1310. Information can include content(s) received from varioussources of content(s), subscriber account(s) and associatedcredential(s), and delivery settings(s), additional subscriber data;pricing schemes, such as promotional rates, flat-rate programs, and/orcouponing campaigns, amongst others. Memory 1330 can also storeinformation from at least one of telephony network(s) 1340, WAN 1350,LAN 1370, SS7 network 1360, or service network(s) 1380.

What has been described above includes examples of aspects of theclaimed subject matter. It is, of course, not possible to describe everyconceivable combination of components or methodologies for purposes ofdescribing the claimed subject matter, but one of ordinary skill in theart may recognize that many further combinations and permutations of thedisclosed subject matter are possible. Accordingly, the disclosedsubject matter is intended to embrace all such alterations,modifications, and variations that fall within the spirit and scope ofthe appended claims. Furthermore, to the extent that the terms“includes,” “contains,” “has,” “having” or variations in form thereofare used in either the detailed description or the claims, such termsare intended to be inclusive in a manner similar to the term“comprising” as “comprising” is interpreted when employed as atransitional word in a claim.

1. (canceled).
 2. A system, comprising: a processor; and a memory thatstores executable instructions that, when executed by the processor,facilitate performance of operations, comprising: subsequent toreceiving message data that is to be directed from a first communicationdevice to a second communication device and based on device capabilitydata associated with the second communication device, modifying themessage data to facilitate a change in fidelity of media within themessage data, and subsequent to the modifying, directing, to the secondcommunication device, the message data and notification data thatspecifies that the fidelity of media within the message data has beenchanged.
 3. The system of claim 2, wherein the operations furthercomprise: receiving the device capability data from the secondcommunication device.
 4. The system of claim 2, wherein the operationsfurther comprise: receiving the device capability data from amanufacturer device associated with the second communication device. 5.The system of claim 2, wherein the operations further comprise:determining the device capability data based on historical dataindicative of an interaction with the second communication device. 6.The system of claim 2, wherein the operations further comprise:directing the notification data to the first communication device. 7.The system of claim 2, wherein the modifying comprises increasing thefidelity of the media.
 8. The system of claim 2, wherein the modifyingcomprises decreasing the fidelity of the media.
 9. The system of claim2, wherein the message data comprises video data and the modifyingcomprises converting the video data to text data that is indicative of atextual description of a summary of the video data.
 10. The system ofclaim 2, wherein the message data comprises video data and the modifyingcomprises converting the video data to image data indicative of a set ofimages.
 11. The system of claim 2, wherein the message data comprisesimage data indicative of an image and the modifying comprises convertingthe image data to text data that is indicative of a textual descriptionof the image.
 12. The system of claim 2, wherein the message datacomprises map data representing an image of a map and the modifyingcomprises converting the map data to text data that describes a locationon the map.
 13. A method, comprising: subsequent to receiving messagedata that is to be directed from a first communication device to asecond communication device and based on device capability dataassociated with the second communication device, modifying, by a systemcomprising a processor, the message data to control a level of detail ofthe message data; and in response to directing the message data to thesecond communication device, facilitating, by the system, a transmissionof notification data to the second communication device, wherein thenotification data specifies that the level of detail of the message datahas been changed.
 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the transmissionis a first transmission and the method further comprises: in response todirecting the message data to the second communication device,facilitating, by the system, a second transmission of the notificationdata to the first communication device.
 15. The method of claim 13,wherein the modifying comprises modifying the message data to increasecontent level of detail.
 16. The method of claim 13, wherein themodifying comprises modifying the message data to reduce content levelof detail.
 17. The method of claim 13, further comprising: receiving thedevice capability data from a network device of a social networkservice.
 18. The method of claim 13, further comprising: determining thedevice capability data based on historical data related to aninteraction with the second communication device.
 19. A computerreadable storage device having stored thereon executable instructionsthat, in response to execution, cause a system comprising a processor toperform operations, the operations comprising: subsequent to receivingfirst message data that is to be directed from a first communicationdevice to a second communication device and based on device capabilitydata associated with the second communication device, converting thefirst message data to second message data, wherein the first messagedata and the second message data have different levels of mediarichness; and in response to directing the second message data to thesecond communication device, facilitating, by the system, a transmissionof notification data to the second communication device, wherein thenotification data specifies that the second message data comprises amodified version of content received from the first communication devicevia the first message data.
 20. The computer readable storage device ofclaim 19, wherein a first level of the different levels of mediarichness that is associated with the first message data is lower than asecond level of the different levels of media richness that isassociated with the second message data.
 21. The computer readablestorage device of claim 19, wherein first level of the different levelsof media richness that is associated with the first message data ishigher than a second level of the different levels of media richnessthat is associated with the second message data.